Tree Peony

Another one from the garden.

Tree peonies, according to the Tree Peony Company, have been grown in China as medicinal plants for over 2000 years; at the time of the Sui Dynasty (AD581-618) cultivated plants in the Imperial Gardens at Xiyan were considered so important that Emperor Yang Ti issued a decree giving them his personal protection.
Then in the 19th century, Empress Ci Xi named the Tree Peony the national flower of China.
Mao's cultural revolution tried to ban ornamental tree peony cultivation, but they were still grown under the guise of medicinal plants; and today, they are considered the perfect Chinese New Year present as they symbolise prosperity, good fortune and love.

Also, it's a really really beautiful plant. Those flowers are huge, easily the length of my hand in diameter.
There are several tree peonies; this one is Paeonia rockii, named after Joseph Rock, who was an Austrian-American explorer, geographer, linguist and botanist. It comes from the Gansu Region of North West China.